Esme Sunshard
Esme Sunshard is a Blood Elf rogue in the Thalassian militia known as The Sunguard, the Knight-Captain of Shallowbrook, and a Corsair authorized by the Thalassian State. Raised in a life of piracy, she fled to Silvermoon City and posed as nobility, joining The Sunguard with the intent of forming political ties. Her plan fell through and she was punished for her crimes, but her loyalty to The Sunguard strengthened. She is now Sunward of the Pathfinders and the Fleet Commander of The Crimson Fleet. Appearance Small of stature with a toned, lithe figure, the mannerisms in which Esme holds herself make up for what she lacks in either height or weight. She stands strong and always holds her chin high, her fel-tainted eyes usually squinted with some sort of skepticism or judgment for whomever is in her sights. Long, thick, bright auburn tresses rest over her shoulders and down her back, remaining loose unless in combat of some sort. Her skin appears soft and sun-kissed, a tell-tale sign of time spent at sea. If she is ever to smile, she might even be considered attractive, though the gesture is rarely seen upon her face. When she speaks, her voice is always as sharp as a knife and her words bite, regardless of her intentions. It may seem harsh, but the fire in her eyes and in every step she takes speaks of passion and tenacity rather than cruelty. When matters become chaotic, her tone reflects her position as a Captain and she does well to speak clearly and always ensures that she will be heard. No matter the clothes she wears, whether they be her leathers of golds and deep reds or something more casual in nature, she always manages to fidget regardless of the strength and firmness in her stance. Her nose and ears will twitch, her gaze will drift, her arms will fold and unfold, and she will constantly shift her weight from one side to the other – a habit from living on a ship where the floors always move beneath the feet. History Early Life & The White Widow Born to a merchant and his wife in a sea-side trading town, Esme was never given the chance to know much about her father. Her mother, Lianna Sunshard, was a flighty woman whose interests would shift with the wind once she would become bored. Nearing Esme’s tenth summer, Lianna’s interests waned from her husband and settled upon a Human by the name of Sid Booker. The man was a Captain and a pirate at that, promising adventure and luxury in exchange for Lianna’s love and agreement to join him on his ship, The White Widow. Telling herself that mothers do not abandon their children and wanting the familiar company, Lianna agreed only if the invitation extended to her daughter as well. Blind with his love for the beautiful Quel’dorei, Sid accepted her terms. A pirate ship was no place for a young girl and unfortunately for Esme, the crew agreed. With the Captain becoming more entranced with his new-found love, he became more concerned with his own life and safety, choosing to forgo more dangerous missions with higher rewards. The crew grew tiresome and restless, settling the blame on not only Sid, but on Lianna and Esme as well for their part in his decision making and their general lack of contribution. While Lianna had the Captain’s protection, Esme was left to fend for herself, especially with her mother having lost interest in her as well. Esme did well to learn all that she could to be useful on the ship, and the skills that she picked up as well as the work that she began to do were all that saved her life when the crew of The White Widow eventually turned on its Captain. A mutiny was led by the first mate, Karsteth, and all that remained loyal to Sid were killed, including Lianna. Esme was spared thanks to her usefulness as potential cheap labor among other reasons. With Karsteth as its new Captain, The White Widow and its crew dove back into the dirty and cruel world of piracy. Those years were the hardest for Esme and she went through many trials that tested her will and ability to survive, including the world-shaking change from Quel’dorei to Sin’dorei. Silvermoon City & Falsifying Nobility Finally, after a little over a century at sea, Esme took a bold gamble and enacted on a previously-failed plan to escape the ship for good. Using her skills as a rogue, she fled The White Widow, but not with empty hands. Before she left, she did well to take with her as many maps and notes as possible, including a journal that had belonged to Sid as well as the two Captains before him. After fleeing from Karsteth and The White Widow, her first stop and last action of risk was to hunt down the Captain’s stash of shares he had surmounted over time. Obtaining this wealth for her own, she went into hiding for years, gradually making her way North through The Eastern Kingdoms. The journey was long and treacherous, but she had a plan to eventually make it to Silvermoon City, the capitol of her people, and to slip back into the society as someone of power. To assist in her plan, she joined the private Thalassian militia, The Sunguard, known for its ties to strong political Houses and note-worthy members. Starting as an Emberward in the Pathfinders under Ranger-Captain Vaelrin Firestorm, she participated in every battle starting with the Siege of Orgrimmar against then War Chief Garrosh Hellscream and his Kor'kron Legion. Her prowess in battle eventually gained her notoriety and she began to climb the ranks, all while still under the guise of being a Lady of the nonexistent House Sunshard. Current Events After a year and some months in The Sunguard, Esme was urged to apply herself and reach the rank of Sunward. In doing so, she was required to pass The Trials of the Sunward. For her second trial, that of humility, she approached Archon Felthier Truefeather and confessed to her previously life of piracy as well as her lies concerning her nobility. The Archon used his political favors to gain Esme clemency, and in lieu of death by hanging, she was sentenced to ten lashes in public display and charged with the responsibility of using her vessel, The Widow's Bane, for privateering on behalf of the Thalassian state. After leading a charge against a sect of necromancers of The Bleeding Eye cult that had made a hold within Silvermoon City, Esme was named Sunward and became second to Vaelrin Firestorm in the unit of the Pathfinders. Since then, she has continued to support the Sunguard, most recently with its battles against the Bleeding Eye in Quel'Thalas, the Iron Horde in Draenor, and the return of the Burning Legion in the Broken Isles. During and after the Sunguard's time in Draenor, Vaelrin Firestorm extended the open position of Knight-Captain of Shallowbrook to Esme. The position entitled her to the lands of Embertree and opened up the legal rights to obtain nobility. After some deliberation regarding what would be required of her, including another oath to House Firestorm, Esme accepted. She has since founded her own House, House Sunshard, and become betrothed to Faervell Bael'Nar. When she is not occupied with her duties as Sunward or Knight-Captain of Embertree, she is often hunting down pirates. While this act can be seen as simply fulfilling her duty as Corsair, it is truthfully her seeing through with her own personal goals, which include seeking revenge against Karsteth and all that have served on The White Widow. Personality A stubborn and tenacious individual, Esme’s personality reflects her harsh upbringing. She rarely smiles, does not take kindly to jests at her expense, and is always highly suspicious. Shamelessly nosy, she is brash and outspoken about the things she wants to know and will usually stop at nothing until she has whatever it is that she wants. Though her loyalty and respect is extremely difficult to earn, once it is held, she is more willing to put aside her more selfish drives to assist or protect as needed. However, she is more than likely always keeping herself in the forefront of her mind. She is not without her desirable attributes, though they are usually heavily concealed behind a frown and displeased wrinkle of her nose. Speaking to her about things she enjoys, such as astrology, sailing, or literature, can usually coax out a more mild and pleasurable side of her. When she is in these more comfortable moods with familiar topics, she is more conversational and less sharp in her words. Fighting & Weaponry What Esme lacks in strength, she makes up for in speed. With her small size and lithe figure, she ensures that she is constantly moving around the enemy in order to make it near impossible for her to be hit. Likewise, after a century at sea, she’s very good at knowing where and how to move, especially when on familiar ground. She uses her terrain and everything she can to her advantage, knowing full well that it will be needed if she wants to win. She specializes with swords and daggers, and she is at her best when she has a sword in her main hand and a dagger in her offhand. While she is not particularly attached to any specific set of blades (save for a dagger she brought with her from her time as a pirate), her weapons must be slender and light like her or else her movements become sluggish, diminishing her abilities greatly. Ships Esme Captains two ships, The Widow's Bane and The Bloody Lily. Both of them hold Oathsworn among their crews, though only The Bloody Lily is sworn to The Crimson Fleet. Some of the crew members include higher-ranking individuals in The Sunguard such as Emberward Baelisian Stormsummer and Lightward Corran Autumnlight. List of Known Crimes Esme has been found guilty of falsifying nobility as well as piracy and all the crimes therein from her time on board The White Widow. She has since been punished for these crimes, leaving them pardoned. For the crimes of piracy, she was charged with taking up the responsibility of corsair/privateer on behalf of the Thalassian State. For the crime of falsifying nobility, she was sentenced to a public lashing of ten strikes. Photos File:Esme_Whinecraft1.png|Art by Whinecraft File:Esme_Whinecraft2.png|Art by Whinecraft File:Esme_Avannteth1.png|Art by Avannteth File:Esme_Nnamier1.png|Art by Nnamier File:Esme_By_Dey.png|Art by Isei-silva File:Esme_Nnamier2.png|Art by Nnamier File:Esme_Nnamier3.png|Art by Nnamier File:Nnamier-Faer-gabe-esme.png|Art by Nnamier File:Ragewang-faermeye.png|Art by Ragewang File:Esme_Gabe_Nnamier.png|Art by Nnamier File:Wine_Moms_by_Aketan.png|Art by Aketan File:Reading_by_nnamier.png|Art by Nnamier Esme Sunshard by Vyllas.png|Art by Vyllas tumblr_noij8pnsOA1qhp96no2_r1_1280.png|Art by Nnamier tumblr_nh496w2yYx1rp0u8oo1_500.png|Art by Ragewang esme_orator.png|By The Orator tumblr_nr6tx0VeAQ1srxxiwo3_1280.png|By Meocraft esmecharactersheetweb.png|Art by Shadowrabbits. forclient.png|Art by Shadowrabbits See Also Character Blog Stories and other writings Category:Characters Category:Pathfinders Category:Pirates Category:Crimson Fleet